Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1887-12-01
CHAPTER xTx.-A STRANGE WEDDING.

|
| One person, however, did not succeed in
| getting out in time before the gates were
| shut, and that was the High Priest Agon,
| who, as we had every reason to believe,
| was SOraiS' great ally, and the heart and
| soul of her party
| When we knew that Agon was caught,
| Nylepthss, Sir Henry, and [ discussed what
was to be done with him. | was for close
| ly incarcerating him, but Nyleptha shook
| her head, saying that it would produce a
| disastrous effect throughout the country
'Ah!' she added, with a stamp of her foot,
] eff win and am once really queen, / will
break the power OF those priests, with their
| rites and reyels and dark secret ways"
| only wished that old Agon could have
! heard her, it would have frightened him
| WELL" said Sir Henry, eff we are not
| to imprison him | suppose that we may as
well let him 60 He's no use here"
Nyleptha looked at him in a curious sort
of way, and said in a dry little voice,
| s'ThinkesG thou so. my lord?"
| 'sEh?" said Curtis mo, [ don't see what
| is the use OF keeping him"
| She said nothing, but continued looki "
| at him in q way that was as shy as il was
| sweet.
| Then at last he understood.
| 'Forgive me, Nyleptha," he said, rather
| TREMENDOUSLY: E'dost thou mean that you
| wilt marry me, even now?"
NAY. | know not: let my lord say" was
| her rapid answer; "but it my lord wills,
| the priest is here aud the altar is there
| pointing to the entrance to private chapel
sand am I not ready TO do the will of my
| lords Listen, oh my lord, in eight days or
| less thou must leave me and go down to
war, for thou shalt lead my armies, and in
war, men sometimes fall and if so, would
| for little space have had thee all my own,
| if only for memory's sake:" and the tears
| overfOWed her lovely eyes and rolled down
| hear face like heavy drops of dew down
| the red heart of a rose.
| "Mayhap, too" she went on, 81 shall
| lose my crown, and with my crown, my
| life and thine also. Sorais is very strong
| and very bitter, and if she prevails she will
| not spare. Who can read the future?
| Happiness is the worlds white bird, that
| alights seldom and flies fast and far, till
| one day he is lost in the clouds. Therefore
should we hold him fast, if by any chance
| he rests for a little space upon our hand.
! It is not wise to neglect the present for the
| future, for who knows what the future
will be, Incubu? Let us pluck our flowers
while the dew is on them, for when the
sun is up they wither, and on the morrow
| will others bloom that we shall never see"
And she lifted her sweet face tO-hlJl- and
| smiled into his eyes, and once more I 1eIG
a horrible pang Of jealousy and turned and
| went away. They never took much notice
suppose, that | was an old fool, and that IL
| did not matter one way or the other, and
really I believe they were right.
So [ went back to our quarters and rum
| mated over things in general, and watched
old Umslopogaas whettlng his ak OUTSIDE
| the window as a vulture WhetS his Deak
beside dying OK.
And in about an hours time Sir Henry
came tearing over, looking very radiant
and wildly excited, and found Good and
myself and even Umslopogaas, and asked
| us if we should like to assist at q real
vvad1inn OF cO11rCa wa said veg and off
we went to the chapel where we found
Agon looking as sulky as any high priest
possibly could, and no wonder. 1t appear
ed that he and Nyleptha had had slight
difference of opinion about the coming
| ceremony. He had fatty refused to ceLe-
brate it. or TO allow any OF MS priests do
so, whereupon Nyleptha became very an
CRY, and told him that she, as Queen, was
| head of the Church, and meant to be obey
ed Indeed, she played the part of a lu-
Vendi Henry VIII. to perfection, and IN
/, sisted that if she wanted to be married
| she would be married, and he should marry
her.
| He still refused to go through the cere-
| mony, so she clinched her argument thus
'Well, cannot execute a High Priest,
| because there is an absurd prejudice
| against it, and I cannot inprlsOn him. be-
cause all his subordinates would raise a
| CRYING that would bring the stars down on
| Zu-Vendis and crush it, but | can leave
| him to contemplate the altar of the Sun
| without anything to eat, because that is
J his natural vocation, and if thou wilt not
| marry me, O Agon! thou shalt be placed
| before the altar yonder, with naught but a
| little water, till such time as thou hast re-
| considered the matter"
| Now as it happened, Agon had been hur-
| ried away that morning without his break
| fast, and was already exceedingly hungry,
| so he presently modified his views and
| consented to marry them, saying at the
| same time that he washed his hands of all
| responsibility in the matter.
| So it happened that presently, attended
| only bv two OF her favorite maidens, came
the Queen Nyleptha, with happy. blushing
| face and downcaSt eyes, dressed in pure
| white, without embroidery Of any sort, as
| seems to be the fashion on these occasions
| in most countries of the world. She did
| not wear q single ornament; even her gold
| circlets were removed, and I thought that
| If possible, she looked more lovely than
| ever without them, as really superbiy beau
| tiful women do.
| She came, curtseyed low to Sir Henry,
| and then took his hand and led him up be-
| fore the altar, and after a little pause, In a
| slow, clear voice uttered the following
| words, which are customary in Zu-Nendls
| if the bride desires and the man consents:
..Thou dost swear by the Sun that thou
wilt take no other woman to be thy vile
| unless / hay my hand upon her and lid hel
] Gomez"
| & swear it, answered Sir Henry; add
/ ing in English, zone is quite enough fol
| me-"
| Then Agon, who had been sulking in 6
| corner near the altar. came forward -an6